Two World Destroyers And A Funeral
by MrsShudder
Summary: The two world destroyers clash again but who will be caught in their crossfire? Mild language and quite violent.


Yet again they had argued over something stupid, it was getting increasingly bad since Skulduggery had disappeared for six weeks, he came back a changed skeleton, like something had sucked the humour from his soul.

Why won't he just admit to being wrong and drop the stubbornness Valkyrie asked herself as he continued to chant nonsensical phrases that he thought made him look more intelligent. She rolled her eyes and headed for the door.

"Where are you going?" Skulduggery asked, sour tongued.

"Ghastly's, I'll be back when you've knocked your ego down to size" her coat was on the stand and she gripped it as he mumbled to himself, her anger flared involuntarily, seeping into her dark eyes and tinting them red.

"What was that?" She asked, turning to look at her partner.

"I said," he took in a long breath and cocked his head to the side. "At Least my ego is self proclaimed and I didn't get it from relying on other people with decent reputations to buffet me up to where I am"

Furious now, Valkyrie rushed forward and swung her leg at his shins, anger lent to her strength and she snapped his bone, he collapsed and looked up at her, the way he held his self, she could tell he was pretending to be unphased.

"I have done so much for you Skulduggery, I have saved you from faceless ones and vampires and all sorts of dangers that you dragged me into, I've saved the world a few times so fuck you and your gigantic ego, I'm done, find a new partner"

Skulduggery glanced at his leg and then back at Valkyrie but she wasn't there anymore, the door slammed and she was gone, he tried to stand but his leg wouldn't take it and he fell again catching a glimpse of her precious oompa loompa car speeding away.

A whole year had passed and she had progressed mightily, Valkyrie had explored each corner of the globe, fought for crime and even saved the world from a hate fueled crazy scientist who managed to build a nuclear weapon.

She was back in Ireland when she first saw him again, his eyeless gaze passed over her like she wasn't there so she regarded him with the same level of childish ignorance. Valkyrie handed over a fugitive that she had caught trying to hide on top of a lamp post. Took her coffee from a young agent who was practically grovelling at her feet. She wore heeled boots that reached the middle of her calf over a pair of white jeans and a red vest top, finished with the same leather jacket she had wore the day she left Skulduggery on his living room floor, she took a pair of sunglasses from inside her jacket and slid them on, taking the chance to study her old partner in one short look, he had his arm dropped over the shoulders of a small blonde agent who was as gullible as Fletcher was when they first met. Skulduggery was scraping the bottom of the barrel.

Fighting the evil smile that threatened to reveal itself, Valkyrie sauntered past her old friend with her chin high.

A little part of him shattered when he looked around to spot his ex-partner, he looked away sharply and grabbed hold of the first woman he could find, slinging his arm her, she resisted slightly but got caught in the shock that the skeleton detective was holding onto her.

He chanced another look at Valkyrie, she was so different now, all grown, the magic in her had practically started to glow from within.

She turned to leave and he lips were beginning to curl into an evil smile, he looked away and began babbling utter nonsense to the poor agent girl and she drank it in like wine, so gullible.

As soon as she was out of sight he detached himself from her and trudged back to his car. His mood was even lower than usual, he headed for home in his precious Bentley, once or twice he'd glanced at the passenger seat half expecting her to be there, smiling or laughing at one of his lame jokes, but there were no jokes, no laughter and no Valkyrie, just the purr of an engine and the shell of a man.

He pulled up to his house and took a long look at it, the front door hung open by one hinge, his gun escaped its holster and leapt into his waiting gloved hand. He locked his car as he left and made for the door, but before he could get in, the ghost of lord Vile, opened his arms before him, welcoming him to another battle for his conscious.

"Oh hell" he muttered and Vile hurled him into the side of his car.

Valkyrie sensed him, Vile he was all over her pawing at her mind, trying to get darquesse to come out and play, but Valkyrie had gotten control over her bad mood a long time ago, and after a few minutes of feeling hazy, Vile left her brain, but not without leaving an image of what was to come, Skulduggery, pulled apart by his former self, part of Valkyrie told her not to care, he didn't care about you all those times he was putting your life in danger it said but she didn't listen to it, the only thing she could think of is saving him.

She stood out of her car that had been parked on the side of a busy motorway and stamped her feet into the mud in the woodland next to the road, she seized up and her brain was washed over with black, and now there was no more Valkyrie, Darquesse shot up into the air, flinging mud and grass all around her. She flew like a bullet to Cemetery road. But it was already torn up in the wake of lord Vile. Skulduggery crashed through a wall and tumbled out onto the road, he tried to stand but stumbled and fell onto his hands and knees, Vile followed through the hole he had just made with the skeleton and he made for Skulduggery again, Darquesse interrupted with a right hook that caught his jaw and send him reeling. She got on top of him, not letting his armour have a chance to protect him, she threw punches and kicks, dropped in elbows and headbutts. Vile struck back after a minute he waited for her to throw her head forward and he latched on, holding her tight to his armour, and the shadows turned sharp beneath her penetrating her chest and head, one spike went through her eye and when it retracted the eye went with it, now with an eyeball attached to his armour Vile discarded Darquesse and made for the skeleton one final time, Darquesse healed her heart, then her chest, then her arms, she sat up as her head reformed itself, Skulduggery was backing up and running out of time, Darquesse launched forward and shoved her hand into Vile's back, crushing the soul within the armour, it died and crumbled to ash before her, the black washed away from her mind and Valkyrie was back, she brushed down her clothes and walked over to her old friend.

"You okay?"She asked cautiously.

" nothing that can't be fixed Valkyrie," he replied breathlessly "you came back"

"Of course I came back" he clutched her hand gently. But she shook him off and picked him up in both arms, they flew to the sanctuary and Skulduggery was looked at immediately by Nye.

She crouched in the hallway outside of the medical bay, her emotions were so jumbled up inside her that she was sure she was about to become delirious.

Why was Vile back? How is Skulduggery? Does he hate me? Do I hate him? No I can't possibly hate him, so how do I feel about him?

She chased her thoughts in circles for at least four hour before the door swung open, Nye ducked through and she looked up at him hopefully, one nod of reassurance was all she needed to see, but she didn't get her nod, Nye looked down at his feet and clasped his insanely long hands together.

She barged past him and sat on the edge of Skulduggery's bed, he lay so still as always, but something about the way he looked just made her want to tear up and fling her arms around him.

"Skul?" She asked gently, he turned his skull towards her, the relief in his tone was unmistakable.

"Valkyrie, you're okay"

"I'm fine it's you I'm worried about"

"I'll be alright Valkyrie, I always am" his hand touched her cheek and he wheezed.

"Skulduggery you're scaring me" she whimpered. He didn't speak for a few minutes, the reached for his hat that sat on the bed beside him and with one grunt placed it on top of her head.

"I can't lie to you Valkyrie, I'm in a bad way here, so if I don't make it-"

"Don't say that" she interrupted quietly "I won't let you die"

"If I don't make it, I want you to know if there is one thing I regret in my life, its hurting you, I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me"

"Don't leave me and I'll forgive you" her remark was cut down by a wave of tears and the crack in her tone let her desperation shine through. "Please don't leave me" she gasped between sobs.

"My sweet Valkyrie, I will always love you, Be brave" he muttered to her and his head rolled back onto the pillow, the hand that she had hold of went limp.

"No Skulduggery don't, be brave means its a hoax, don't you dare leave me, don't do this to me Skulduggery! I don't want to be brave, come back again!" She broke down onto his chest, clutching at the tattered remains of his shirt, "I love you"

A few weeks had passed and she had stayed at his house the whole time, breathing him in, reading through his old case files, wearing his shirts to sleep in his bed. But the day of the funeral had come and only a few people had turned up to it, Ghastly of course, Gordon's echo stone had been put into the church, and a few other people she didn't know. She stood at the front of the church, wearing a black dress and a black cardigan over it despite the warmth.

"Skulduggery was..." She bit her lip against the oncoming tears. "He was a legend in his own right, he rewrote history and saved the earth from evil. There was never a crime too big for him to solve, the skeleton detective was quite simply the best detective the world could ask for, and the best friend I could have ever hoped to have, he lead me in the right direction and always considered me in every choice." She paused to look up but no one had moved. "His very last words to me were 'I will always love you, be brave' and I can't believe it took me so long to realise that I loved him just the same, so just for you Skul, I will be brave, and I will carry on your work. I can only hope I can do justice by your name. I love you" she lowered her head and an all too familiar tune drifted from the back of the church.

_Is that... The girl from Ipanema_? She thought, he eyes drug up and the skeleton detective stood before her, only he was wearing skin, with brown soft hair and sharp emerald eyes.

"Only you would turn up at your own funeral" Ghastly said and the two began beaming at each other, he glanced at Valkyrie and nodded.

"I said be brave didn't I?"


End file.
